Alright, today is a doozy, friends! Today, we’re chatting about the 5 things no one tells you about wedding planning. OH BOY! There are so many things you learn and might hate doing for your wedding planning season, so let’s get it all out now so there wont be any surprises! Welcome to this week’s SJ’s Bridal Bantering madness!

#1) You’ll be SUPER stressed.

Even though we got all our big vendors booked right away, there are millions, and I mean millions of little details and other things you have to think about when planning your wedding. I was so beyond stressed when planning that it was unbearable. Talking with multiple vendors, figuring out who’s doing what the day of, times people will arrive, how to have your hair, what if someone cuts themselves setting up decorations, everything has to be thought through. Crazy right?

Here are some tips to prepare for stressful wedding planning days: 

~Take at least 1-2 days off from wedding planning during the week. Instead of planning, go out for a date night! Go to the movies, get a couples massage, anything to help you relax and enjoy being engaged to each other. I always recommend having a date night once a week just to spend time together and de-stress. Date night doesn’t have to mean a big dinner and a movie, you could clean the house together, go for a walk around the neighborhood, just go out for some ice cream, anything simple that banks some good quality time together.

~Get some essential oils, wine, and candles. Make sure you have some ‘you’ time. You can paint your nails, get your hair done, read a book, and put all the wedding planning stressful ideas out of your head.

~Yoga! Yoga saved my booty when wedding planning. If I got a thought in my head about something I needed to look into for the wedding, I would just write it down and then meditate on my yoga mat. It is seriously so relaxing after about 20-30 min of yoga and you’ll feel great after.

#2) You’ll be a little broke.

No one tells you just how much things are going to cost!! I was shocked at how much flowers were going to be, how much food per plate was going to cost, and drinks, napkins, everything! It is seriously insane. Start saving now- you’ll thank me later.

What I used to do every paycheck was save about $500 per paycheck and put it into my savings. That way, I am saving up quite a bit of the big things for planning. Keep track of what you want to get for your wedding, look for deals, Black Friday, anything you can to prepare for the big hit to your bank account when planning.

If your parents are helping out, great! Anything will seriously help.

#3) Schedule Down Time

Like I stated in #1, be sure to always have time together with your fiancé/ fiancee. It is so important to not loose sight of why you’re getting married to each other. Recreate your first date, splurge on a nice dinner, surprise each other with something like baking cookies, going dancing, ice skating, anything to keep connected. It is so easy to get lost and stressed in wedding planning that you realize that you haven’t just ‘be’ with each other. So don’t forget to schedule date night, take time together, and not even talking about wedding planning at all.

#4) Backup plans are your best friend.

You will always need a backup plan. People don’t tell you how you need to have a backup plan for almost everything at your wedding.

What if the groom lost his socks? What if it rains? What if the officiant cut his finger putting up decorations? Etc. Now, don’t go crazy over this one! There are SO many ‘what if’ questions that could happen, but just remember to stay calm and just think about big picture things for creating your back up plan. Like for example, what if it rains? Well most venues have an inside area, but if yours does not, maybe have a wedding tent on hold incase the weather decides not to corporate.

What if the caterer cancels? Well that would be mega lame, but it might happen if something heaven forbid happens. Make sure someone has a Costco membership and can run to the warehouse for some bulk goodies. Lol

Just big picture things- some little things you shouldn’t worry about the day of, but always have someone who is making sure you have everything, has an emergency kit (mentioned in another Banter post) and don’t forget to relax.

#5) Details, Details, Details.

Man, there are SO many things you have to think about when planning your wedding that it’s a little stressful just thinking about it. If you keep thinking about things you need to look into or things you need to buy, maybe find what you’re looking for on Amazon or somewhere and just keep it in your cart- great, you found it, now move on.

I highly recommend getting a journal to write down all your thoughts, things you want in your wedding, and maybe some prices too. Anything to help you organize your thoughts and not get stressed.

This might be random, but when we were planning our wedding, I actually walked through the whole day though my mind to see what details might be needed. Like for example: We had little water bottles for our guests when they arrived. It was a super hot day in August so we thought people might wanted some water. So how were we going to present the water to them? We got a little blackboard and said “Have some H2O! Thanks for being here” and had the water bottles in a giant wicker basket. Now, how to make them stay cold on a hot day? We had to get ice. Now, how to  make sure the ice would not melt all over the basket? We got a clear shower curtain to put on the bed of the basket and covered that with burlap to make it look a little prettier. Then we put the basket full of bottles on top of a wine barrel so people wont have to bend over to get it. SO many things, but it ending up being awesome for our guests and worked out well.

Remember, wedding planning should be fun! Don’t let it consume you and don’t let it stress you out. Things will always go wrong, but just remember to enjoy everything that happens. Another thing to remember: it’s about the marriage, not the wedding day. 

Happy Bridal Banter day!